Dr. SATO Tsugitaka inaugurated the discussion, briefly going over the four years that elapsed since the start of the project, Islamic Area Studies. He spoke of the contributions, in terms of publications and approaches, which the project made to the field of Islamic studies both in Japan and abroad. In addition, Dr. Sato referred to the project’s role in establishing a setting, where researchers from different countries gathered to introduce their work, exchange views and define new approaches that would lead to a better understanding of Islam as religion and civilisation. The project also gave an opportunity to scholars to establish personal contacts that would help improve cooperation among them.

　　　Referring to the end of the project, Dr. Sato voiced that, rather than representing a closing stage, it was the beginning of a period that would enhance understanding of Islam. He also stressed that in order to further understanding of Islamic societies, there was need to compare Islamic societies in the Middle East, Central Asia and South-East Asia. In addition, Dr. Sato pointed that this was mainly done within the framework of historical studies as key to understanding contemporary Muslim societies. He added that Islamic Area Studies helped further the use of computerisation as a tool to make Japanese scholarship known abroad, while it also helped young researchers an students interact with specialists in different fields and from different countries. Finally Dr. Sato emphasised that Japanese scholars needed to further their interaction with specialist from the Middle East and Asia.

　　　Dr. Stephen R. Humphreys stated that the achievements of this project were promising and made Japanese scholarship part of the world of Islamic studies. Indeed, for Dr. Humphreys, if the projects did not exist it would have been difficult to achieve this. In addition, he emphasised the important role played by workshops, symposia and lectures organised by Islamic Areas Studies project in bringing scholars from different regions into direct contact. He said that this was different from reading one’s works, for researchers could experience firsthand the way others approaching problems and their working habits. Dr. Humphreys emphasised the role of personal contacts in furthering scholarly enterprise.

　　　Dr. Humphreys also referred to the project’s institutional setting, which, according to him worked out well and helped in its success. In the United States, he said, scholars rather emphasised independent work and avoided centralised forms of research settings. He referred to MESA as North America’s main framework which provided scholars of Islamic studies with a common identity. He mentioned that MESA engaged in teaching programs, funding research and promoting understanding of related issues in educational institutions. Dr. Humphreys mentioned that, given her stable relation with Islamic countries, Japan could be a good setting for academic encounters and collaboration. He finally referred to the issue of language and suggested that, even though he did not experience such academic encounters that made use of a foreign language (in this case English), it would have been better for scholars to express themselves in their native language. On the other hand, since there was need for Japanese scholarship to be known abroad, a selective translation of major works could help solve this issue.

　　　Dr. Yassin EL-SAYED emphasised that through his experience he came to the conclusion that the need to make use of sociological instruments to better understand Muslim societies was detrimental. Within this context, he added that a combination of historical studies and cultural analysis would lead to better understanding of several phenomena. He mentioned that in his country, such approach was useful to understand political situation, such as the appearance of Islamist groups.

　　　In addition, Dr. el-Sayed stressed the need for discourse analysis as a tool to advance Islamic area studies, while insisting on the importance of cultural analysis. He depicted some of examples showing how such an approach could be applied and also advance Islamic area studies.

　　　Dr. Dale F. Eickelman mentioned the quality attained by Japanese scholarship of Islamic areas studies, the positive impact of IAS project on cooperation between scholars from different regions and the need to further this collaboration. He also referred to the need for funds and support of governmental institutions, especially ministry of education.

　　　Dr. Eickelman noted that becoming a researcher of Islamic studies was not an easy task, which required thorough language training, which necessitates years of commitment and labour. He stressed that there was a pressing need for the ministry of education and other organisations that deal with the region to have long-term plans. This would allow students to concentrate on their studies without having to worry about employment opportunities. This feeling of insecurity, according to Dr. Eickelman, could undermine the future prospects of Islamic areas studies.

　　　There seemed to be a consensus among the audience that Islamic Area Studies project was indeed a success. One of the present participants expressed her surprise at the large number of students among the participants, which she did not witness in other large symposia or conferences. In addition, an auditor raised the issue of lack of interest in contemporary issues in Japan, while another stressed the need to discuss researchers’ relationships with the governments of their countries, which, according to some contradicted academic ethics and inhibited their independence. One auditor also raised the issue of decline of interest in religious studies, which should be revived, for this could significantly contribute to the understanding of contemporary discourse and Islamic societies.

　　　By and large, the concluding session provided an excellent setting, whereby opinions on the prospects and challenges facing Islamic studies were addressed from different angles. At this point, the question is how would the project (IAS), as a whole, redefine future cross-border cooperation among researchers of Islamic studies? In the meantime, the prospects seem very promising.